“According to one friend on Manus Island, Hamed was frequently taunted by local Manusians and sometimes beaten by police. His brother Ahmad is certain it was the conditions on Manus that led to his psychological breakdown.
”

Lauren Williams
Before refugee Hamed Shamshiripour took his own life on Manus Island, he had made repeated requests to be sent home to Iran.

“Recent analysis found that the source of only 12 to 15 per cent of donations to the major political parties was fully, transparently identified, while more than 50 per cent of the money went ‘entirely undisclosed’.”

Mike Seccombe
A senate inquiry will consider how donations to political parties influence policy and how they’re hidden, calling on representatives from the biggest donors in the mining and banking industries to explain what they’re buying.

Kristina Kukolja
Redacted documents leave open the possibility that the International Criminal Court made contact with the government about the involvement of ADF special forces in civilian deaths in Afghanistan.

“Turnbull effectively signed the death warrant on forests in a whole brace of reserves. He also endorsed logging of 159 forest coupes already listed by Tasmanian Premier Will Hodgman for clear-felling in other Tarkine forests, including in the headquarters of the Frankland River where protesters up trees have held off logging during the past year.
”

“To appeal to the Hansonites, Turnbull and his ministers are trying to out-Pauline Pauline. To get at Labor they have hit the nuclear button on political hyperbole. Both tactics reek of political desperation but after 18 consecutive bad Newspolls – the past six diabolical – you can almost understand it. None of it is designed to inspire the nation, it has only one base purpose: survival.”

After Grouper Greg Sheridan’s great burst of God-bothering in last weekend’s Catholic Boys Daily, it’s only natural to find him listed as the guest speaker at Father Lyle’s Australian Christian Lobby annual dinner on Friday, November 17.

The Lucky Country is an insider’s outside view of Australia’s most important political and
economic debates. Hosted by The Australia Institute’s Chief Economist Richard
Denniss, The Lucky Country is a weekly podcast from Schwartz Media which applies
common sense to complex issues.

It is this man who is touted as a future leader of the Liberal Party. The Australian has written a draft of the speech he would give. It draws on family values and a celebration of his simplicity. There is nothing to see in Dutton except the worst of what this country could be. We can only be thankful that the court he so criticises stops him from taking us there with him. He plays politics as if it were a game but there is nothing to win, only losses.

Susan Chenery
Willem Dafoe’s dark charisma has helped him build a career on complicated, often villainous roles, but for his latest film he narrates a documentary about adventurers who climb and throw themselves off mountains. Such people push themselves to the edge, as Dafoe does. But he says he is not so brave – “I don’t even want to go in a hot-air balloon” – and admits to vertigo.

“In a small waiting room, I’m lying on a metal hospital trolley. I am alone. Through the swing doors into the operating theatre, where they are running an hour late, I can hear them preparing for me: muffled voices, clanging and scraping, the sound of metal. Watching the clock above the doors, I begin to think about Kate Cole-Adams. Twice we’d been together at The National Writers’ House. For two weeks I’d heard stories from her book: people waking under anaesthesia, pain and paralysis, time lost, memories that were confused or warped; or memories intact but disbelieved.”

“What brought me to cook this for the page was stumbling across these perfect little cauliflowers in the local vegetable shop. These, roasted with a knob of butter and a good pinch of salt, were quite possibly the nicest thing I’ve eaten this winter.”

2. Who was the second man to walk on the moon’s surface? (Bonus point for naming the total number of men to walk on the moon.)

Buzz Aldrin. (Bonus point: 12 men.)

3. Which French monarch was known as the Sun King?

Louis XIV.

4. What two films did Elizabeth Taylor win Best Actress Oscars for?

Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf and BUtterfield 8.

5. Which cricketer was nicknamed The Little Master?

Sachin Tendulkar.

6. Name the deputy leader of the National Party of Australia?

Fiona Nash.

7. In what year did Abel Tasman first sight Tasmania?

1642.

8. Which novel by Kate Grenville was shortlisted for a Miles Franklin Award and Man Booker Prize in 2006?

The Secret River.

9. Which tradesman would use a jig, a horse and a mitre gauge?

A carpenter.

10. What colour is celadon pottery?

Green-grey.

Quotes

MARRIAGE

“I think it would be a good thing if we get to have more specificity on that before we vote.”

John HowardThe former prime minister expresses concern that religious freedoms will not be protected before a postal vote on same-sex marriage. Marriage is very important to Howard: it allowed him to move out of home at the age of 32.

COURTS

“This is an essential and accepted part of any democracy.”

Andrew ScottingThe NSW District Court judge rules that it is not illegal to call Tony Abbott a “cunt”. Nor, presumably, is it untrue.

CLIMATE

“I don’t believe Hurricane Harvey is God’s punishment for Houston electing a lesbian mayor. But that is more credible than ‘climate change’.”

Ann CoulterThe conservative commentator responds to a storm that displaced 30,000 people and destroyed swaths of Texas. Wait until she finds out the actual mayor is black – and a Democrat.

VISA

“We’re not going to issue a visa for this particular individual.”

Peter DuttonThe immigration minister blocks a visit from anti-vaccination advocate Kent Heckenlively. The American would have had more luck if he described himself as a “Whooping cough pick-up artist”.

ART

“You can guess what many people would rather hang 58 metres over George Street… and it’s not a Cloud Arch.”

Alan JonesThe broadcaster continues his push for the public killing of prominent women. In this instance, it is Clover Moore for the crime of supporting public sculpture.

MASSAGE

“What they were offering was not what I was seeking. I’ll make that very clear. And that’s when they started to get feisty.”

Gareth WardThe NSW Liberal MP explains how he came to be blackmailed by two men, one of whom was apparently a minor, after ordering a massage in his hotel room in New York. Checks out.